Royal Edinburgh Ticket
All About the Edinburgh Pass
What’s the Royal Edinburgh Ticket?
The Royal Edinburgh Ticket is a quite limited but very attractive city pass that included four high quality attractions in a single ticket:
- Free travel on Hop-on Hop-off buses (48 hours)
- Free entry to Edinburgh Castle
- Free admission to the Palace of Holyroodhouse
- Free access to the Royal Yacht Britannia
For each of the three sights you will enjoy guaranteed admission on any given day. This means that even though you don’t have to reserve a time slot for your visit, you will still get in, even if there is a lot going on that day.
You can buy your Royal Edinburgh Ticket online before you start your journey. Once you have purchased your ticket you will receive a voucher which you can redeem at a central location in Edinburgh.
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About the Included Attractions
All three sights are top attractions in Edinburgh. This city pass does not contain any filling material that you pay for but won’t enjoy. Instead, you only purchase a ticket for sights that most tourists would want to visit anyway.
Customer reviews are correspondingly positive. Whether at Get Your Guide, Viator or Tripadvisor, customers almost always award 5 stars because they are enthusiastic about the bus tour, the attractions and the savings made with the Royal Edinburgh Ticket.
How Much Does It Cost?
The ticket costs £57.00 for adults and £50.00 for senior citizens aged 60 and over.
Children between 5 and 15 get their ticket for £31.00. Children under 5 can use all included services free of charge (valid for up to two children per adult).
How Much Do You Save?
The regular ticket prices for all attractions together are £75.00:
| Attraction | Single Ticket Price | Royal Edinburgh Ticket |
|---|---|---|
| 48h Hop-on Hop-off bus | £24.00 | £57.00 |
| Edinburgh Castle | £17.50 | |
| Palace of Holyroodhouse | £16.50 | |
| Royal Yacht Britannia | £17.00 | |
| Sum of ticket prices | £75.00 | £57.00 |
| Maximum Savings | £18.00 |
The maximum saving – if you take advantage of all the services included – is £18.00. Another advantage is, that you only have to buy one ticket for four attractions.
Is the Royal Pass Worth it?
This Edinburgh City Pass is worthwhile if you want to visit three top attractions in Edinburgh and explore the city on the hop-on hop-off buses anyway.
You could even skip one of the three attractions and still not pay more money than when buying single tickets. Having the Royal Edinburgh Ticket in your pocket also means you don’t have to queue up at the box offices, which are very busy in high season.
However, if you are not interested in the bus rides, the Royal Edinburgh Ticket is not worth it. In this case, it is better to buy tickets for the sights individually online. The Hop-on Hop-off buses are a central part of the Royal Edinburgh Ticket.
Validity of the Edinburgh Ticket
As soon as you exchange your online voucher for the Royal Edinburgh Ticket, the 48 hours begin. During those 48 hours you can ride the Hop-on Hop-off buses as often as you like.
Entry to the three attractions is not affected by this time limit. You can still visit them after the 48 hours as you will receive individual tickets for each attraction.
Where Can You Get the Royal Pass?
You can buy your Royal Edinburgh Ticket online from a number of websites, such as Get Your Guide. Once you have purchased your ticket you will receive a voucher that you can print out or save to your mobile phone. You can then exchange the voucher for the tickets in Edinburgh. With Get Your Guide, you benefit from free cancellation up to 24 hours before departure.
All bus tours start at Waverly Bridge in the centre of Edinburgh. There is no ticket office, but you will find many employees of Edinburgh Bus Tours. They will scan your voucher and give you the tickets for the bus tours and the three sights.
What We Like About the Pass
The Royal Edinburgh Ticket focuses on the essentials. It includes only the top attractions of the city.
With the ticket you save £18.00 compared to buying individual tickets.
Plus, with the Royal Edinburgh Ticket you never have to worry about getting access to any of the sights. Admission is guaranteed with this pass.
What We Don’t Like About the Pass
The number of included attractions is very limited.
The Royal Edinburgh Ticket is not a proper city pass. Instead, you will receive several individual tickets in exchange for your voucher.
FAQ About the Royal Edinburgh Ticket
Can I visit the attractions more than once?
No, with the Royal Edinburgh Ticket you can only visit each attraction once. With the Hop-on Hop-off buses you can travel as often as you like within 48 hours.
How long is the Royal Edinburgh Pass valid?
Once you go to Edinburgh to exchange your online voucher for a bus ticket, you have 48 hours to take the bus as often as you like.
The other attractions you can visit at any time, even when 48 hours have passed.
Can I freely choose the visiting hours?
Basically, yes. However, you should consider the opening hours of the attractions. Some of them do not open until 10 a.m. and close again in the afternoon. Especially in autumn and winter the opening hours are sometimes quite short.
The Palace of Holyroodhouse closes on some weeks of the year when the Queen is present. Then you are not allowed to visit the palace. Instead, you’ll get the opportunity to visit the exhibition in the Queen’s Gallery for free. Check out closing times on the official website.
Do I need a ticket for my children?
Children under 5 years of age do not need their own ticket. They can use all included services free of charge. For children from 5 to 15 years there are discounted tickets.
Who can I contact if I have questions?
The Royal Edinburgh Ticket is issued by Edinburgh Bus Tours. Customer service can be contacted by email (info@edinburghtour.com) or by phone on +44 131 475 0618.
Can I cancel my purchase?
When you buy your Royal Edinburgh ticket from Get Your Guide, you specify the date from which you wish to use the ticket for the first time. You can cancel your ticket free of charge up to 24 hours in advance and receive a full refund.
Alternatives to the Royal Pass
The ticket is not worth it for you because you do not want to visit one of the sights or you are not interested in the Hop-on Hop-off buses? In this case you should buy individual tickets for all attractions online. It’s worthwhile because you won’t have to queue at the box office. Moreover, online tickets are often cheaper than tickets at the box office.
For the following attractions you can buy tickets online at Get Your Guide:
- Edinburgh Castle – Fast Track
- Palace of Holyroodhouse
- Royal Yacht Britannia – Fast Track incl. Audioguide
- Hop-on Hop-off bus
- Harry Potter Magical Walking Tour
- Ghostly Underground Vaults Tour
- Day Tour: Lochness, Glencoe & Highlands
If you are travelling around Scotland by car and are interested in historical sites, the Historic Scotland Explorer Pass may be worth your while. If you want to get away from the classic Edinburgh sights and visit more off-the-path attractions, the Edinburgh City Pass is a great option.